Staged Love
by CierraTheAlaskanDragonSlayer
Summary: "We have to what!" they cried in unison. "Date each other," he repeated. "You see, the record label is having some financial problems. We think that if you date one another, it could solve those problems." He paused. "It's for the greater good of everyone at this company. Trust me, if there was another way...but this is our last resort." CS, LGS, PS, IKS, OCxOC. [Slow-moving plot.]
1. Prologue

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**Staged**** Love**

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_Prologue_

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It seemed like any other Friday afternoon in Petalburg City. The morning sun was beating high up in the bright blue sky. A gentle melody carried through the trees, accompanied by a soft summer breeze.

But about a mile into the city, people were glancing back curiously at the Petalburg Gym. Some even whipped out their Pokédexes; ready to call Officer Jenny at any second.

There was quite a… disturbance there, some would say.

A disturbance indeed.

"Arceus Arceus Arceus Arceus _Arceus_! I can_not _believe this! No way!" an animated brunette screamed as she paced around the room.

"May! Why are you screaming, dear? Is everything alright?" called a motherly voice from the second floor. Footsteps stomped down the stairs hurriedly. At the bottom appeared a forty-one year-old woman with wide, concerned sapphire eyes.

May snapped her head towards her mother, a crazily happy look spreading across her heart-shaped features. "Mom! Guess who I just got a call from," she squealed, unable to hold in her exhilaration for even a second.

Caroline—May's mother—raised her eyebrows. "That nice boy—Drew, was it?"

A smirk sneaked onto Caroline's lips as her daughter's cheeks grew beet red.

"N-no! Ew! _Mom_! I told you: I don't like Drew like that! He's just a _rival_. Geez," mumbled May, curving her lower lip into a pout.

Caroline giggled. "Okay, then, who was it that called?"

May instantly brightened. "Guess, guess!" Her eyes turned to slits. "And if you even _mention _that green hairball again—"

"Green hairball? Now that's a new one."

"—I won't tell you at all!"

"Okay, okay, honeybunch."

"Don't call me honeybunch! It's weird."

Caroline giggled again. "Alright… so, was it the producers of the Grand Festival?"

May frowned thoughtfully. "Um, no. Guess again!"

"Oh, I know! Was it Max? He hasn't called for quite some time…"

May shook her head. "You're really bad at this," she laughed.

Caroline puffed her cheeks out. "Fine, I give up! Just tell me already."

May squealed again and threw her arms around her mother. "Cerulean Academy's head of Board of Admissions called on the video phone to personally invite me to their school on a rare freshman coordinating scholarship!" she exclaimed all in one breath.

"Honey, that's amazing!" cried Caroline. "And you got in on a rare scholarship? Wow! I always knew you were special…"

May blushed. "Aw, Mom… Thank you. But, really, it's only because I have so many wonderful people in my life who believe in me."

Caroline's eyes filled with tears. "Oh, I'm so proud of you, May. You really deserve to go to such an elite school. I'm going to miss you so much."

May smiled sincerely at her mother. "Thank you, Momma. And I'll miss you too. Unfortunately, I have to leave this Wednesday if I want to make it to orientation week."

Sniffling, Caroline nodded. "Go on, honey, and start packing. You're going to be there for a while, so you'll need to pack up just about everything in your room."

"Even the furniture?" May asked stupidly. "'Cause I don't think that'll fit in a suitcase…"

Throwing her head back into a laugh, Caroline wiped the tears that had collected in the corners of her eyelashes away. Leave it up to her daughter to make a bittersweet moment a not-so-bitter one. "No, May, it'd be nice if you left the furniture here for when you come to visit during the holidays."

Nodding, May wrapped her arms around her mother in a tight hug. "I love you, Mom," she whispered.

"I love you too, sweetie. Now go on, get packing! Especially if you want to spend your last few days with us instead of holed up in your room." May giggled. "I can even call Maxie and have him come home for a while if you'd like."

"That'd be great. Well, I guess I'll see you at dinner!"

Releasing her mother, May bolted up the stairs and into her bedroom. After pulling out two large suitcases and a duffle bag out from under her bed, she crossed the room and over to her PokéDock.

After plugging in her Pokédex and shuffling through all the songs, she finally found one that explained how she was feeling at the moment.

A steady beat filled the room. Clapping her hands at the proper moments, May started to stuff the clothes from her dresser drawer and into the first suitcase.

Taking in a deep breath, she began to sing along with 80s-style male singer, "_Risin' up, back on the street. Took my time, took my chances. Went the distance now I'm back on my feet! Just a girl and her will to survive._"

After filling the first suitcase with all of her pants, skirts, and undergarments, she skipped over to her closet and pulled out shirts and dresses to toss into the next suitcase. "_So many times, it happens too fast. You trade your passion for glory. Don't lose your grip on the dreams of the past; you must fight just to keep them alive!_"

Lightly stomping her feet to the beat, May continued to giggle and throw her clothes into her suitcase. She started to laugh harder when she tripped over her own feet. "_It's the eye of the tiger—it's the thrill of the fight! Rising up to the challenge of our rival! As the last known survivor stalks his prey in the night. And he's watching us all in the eye…_"

This was going to be the _best. Year. Ever. _

"_Of the tiger_!"

**ツ**

* * *

"_Face to face, out in the heat. Stayin' tough, stayin' hungry. They stack the odds till we take to the street, for we kill with the skill to survive_," fifteen-year-old Leaf Green sang loudly along with Dave Bickler. She was currently tackling her summer Math book, and this seemed to be the only song that could keep her focused.

Suddenly the video phone downstairs started to ring. Assuming that her sister would pick it up (her mother was at Pallet Town's local farmer's market); Leaf just shrugged and continued to jot down the answers to her math problems. But when the phone continued to chirp, she groaned, sat up, paused Bickler's amazing voice, and swiftly traipsed down the stairs.

Slumping into the green stool, Leaf pressed the _Answer _button.

A young, beautiful woman popped up on the screen. "Miss Leaf Green?" the woman asked politely.

Leaf tilted her head to the side. The woman couldn't be any more than twenty-eight-years-old. And certainty no one Leaf knew. "Um, yes?"

"Hello there. My name is Mrs. Lauren Smith. I am the head of the Board of Admissions for both Cerulean Academy's high school and middle school. Does Miss Aqua Green happen to be there with you at the moment?"

Leaf could feel her eyes widen into the size of golf balls. "Uh, yeah, just one moment please!" she said hastily as she stood up and ran back up the stairs. Finding her sister's bedroom door, Leaf banged on it three times. "Aqua! Get your butt downstairs _now_! It's about Cerulean Academy!"

The door immediately opened with a creak of its hinges. A thirteen-year-old girl with long, curly chocolate-colored hair hurried pass Leaf and down the stairs.

Sighing and rolling her eyes, Leaf quickly followed.

Once downstairs, Aqua leaped into the green stool. Leaf opted for crouching near her sister.

"Hello Mrs. Smith, I'm back again," said Leaf sheepishly. "And this is Aqua—my sister."

Aqua grinned and saluted. Leaf resisted the urge to knock her upside the head.

"Yes, thank you for joining us Miss Aqua," said Mrs. Smith, a light smile at the corners of her lips. "Now, as to why I am calling… I think you two, and your mother, will be happy to hear that you are both accepted into Cerulean Academy on a one-year scholarship."

The two sister's jaws dropped.

"Normally, we—the Board of Admissions—would send you a letter of your acceptance. But it has come to light here at Cerulean Academy that you two are very talented battlers. Out of the ten freshman scholarships we are offering to our high school students, you, Miss Leaf, will be taking one of those slots as a freshman majoring in Battle Tactics."

Mrs. Smith eyes shifted to Aqua. "And you, Miss Aqua, will be taking one of the four scholarships we are offering for the middle school students majoring in Battle Strategies," she informed. There was some kind of secretive look in her golden brown eyes that neither Leaf nor Aqua could explain.

With one last smile, Mrs. Smith said, "We hope to see you for orientation week this Wednesday. You will receive more information there. Thank you for your time." Then the screen flashed _Call Ended_.

Leaf and Aqua slowly turned their heads to see each other's reactions. They looked each other in the eyes, and then screamed at the top of their lungs.

They were going to Cerulean Academy on rare scholarships!

_No. Way_!

Leaping out of her crouching position, Leaf squealed all the way back up the stairs. Not bothering to shut her bedroom door, she hurdled over her bed and jammed her finger onto the play button. The music immediately resumed.

"_It's the eye of the tiger—it's the thrill of the fight! Risin' up to the challenge of our rival! As the last known survivor stalks his prey in the night,_" Leaf sang as she put her hands out in front of her and clawed at the air like a cat—or a tiger.

Aqua stood in front of Leaf's open door, staring at her sister incredulously. "You are so _weird_," she spoke matter-of-factly. But then she smiled. "May I join you?"

Leaf nodded with a giggle.

"_And he's watching us all in the eye…—_"

**ツ**

* * *

"_Of the tiger!_"

"Ashy-boy! Could you keep it down, please? I'm trying to do lab work here," fifteen-year-old Gary Oak complained, exasperated.

A muffled groan emanated from the den about a 100 feet away. "And _I'm _trying to play Guitar Hero here." Another grunt sounded. "And stop calling me Ashy-boy, Gare-bear."

Gary faux-whimpered. "Hey, only Leafy gets to call me that."

"What are you talking about?" asked Ash as he and Pikachu emerged from the den, his game paused. "Your fangirls call you that all the time."

Gary lifted his eyes away from the microscope to meet Ash's gaze. His eyebrows rose. "Does that make you my fangirl?"

Ash frowned. "Huh?"

Gary's shoulders shook with laughter. "Never mind."

Pikachu snickered at the two rival's banter, while Ash just shrugged. But as he was about to resume his game, the private video phone began to ring.

Puzzlement quickly washed over Gary. It was rare that they ever got phone calls from the private line, and when they did it was usually an emergency. Quickly pushing his chair out, he jogged to the private video phone.

Only, when a beautiful woman popped up on the screen, Gary suddenly didn't remember why he was there in the first place. He could feel his "Flirt Switch" flick up, and he gave the woman a charming smile.

"Why hello there, Miss. What can I do for you?" asked Gary, winking. His smirk grew when the woman's ears turned pink, but was rather disappointed that her stern facial expression stayed just that, stern.

The women cleared her throat, and Gary could feel Ash and Pikachu hovering over his shoulder. Right as she was about to speak, though, she caught sight of Ash. Her eyes lit up, looking very pleased. "Hello, Mr. Gary Oak, Mr. Ash Ketchum," she finally spoke, her voice cheerful. Her eyes told Gary that she strictly meant business, nonetheless, and he was tempted to give her the "Gare-bear Stare" but she started talking again before he had the chance.

"My name is _Mrs. _Lauren Smith," she said, putting the emphasis on "_Mrs._" as she looked at Gary suspiciously. However, a very slight smile curled at the edge of her lips as she continued. "I am at the head of Board of Admissions at Cerulean Academy, and I'd like to have a word with you two."

Gary visibly paled. He suddenly felt especially relieved that he hadn't gone into full flirting mode; otherwise he could very well have ruined his chances at C.A. all together (if he even had any in the first place).

Behind him, Ash and Pikachu grinned at each other. Ash pumped his fist into the air and muttered an, "Alright!" After all, it had to be good if Mrs. Smith was calling them personally. At least, he hoped.

Mrs. Smith continued, "Yes, well, fortunately for you, I have some great news. Mr. Oak, you have been invited to Cerulean Academy on a rare freshman scholarship, where you will devote most of your time in the science lab. However, you will still have to take at least four primary classes—just as anyone else—and one other class of your choice," she paused, letting the information sink in. The corners of her mouth tugged up slightly as Gary's jaw stayed slacked and Ash stared at her in surprise.

Focusing her gaze on Ash, she spoke again. "And you, Mr. Ketchum. You have impressed nearly everyone at the Board of Admissions with your significant battling skills. As a result, you have also been invited on a rare freshman scholarship. Your main class shall be Battle Tactics; however, as I've said before, you will have to take at least four other primary classes and one other of your choice.

"Orientation week is this upcoming Wednesday, and we'd all love it if we could see you there." Mrs. Smith smiled crookedly. "Good day, gentleman." The two teens heard her muttering something about keeping an eye on Trainers from Pallet Town, and then the screen flashed _Call Ended_.

Ash and Gary gawked at each other. As Gary was about to say something, the front entrance to the laboratory burst open, and in came a squealing, jumping-for-joy Leaf.

"Omigosh, _guys_! You will _not _believe who just called me!" she practically screamed, hoisting Pikachu off of Ash's shoulders and twirling him around in a circle.

Gary eyed her. "Let me guess, a beautiful woman from Cerulean Academy?"

Leaf stopped spinning and stared at him in disbelief. "How'd you know?" Suddenly her eyes narrowed. "Ew, Gare-bear. Were you hitting on her? She's married, you know," she said, then _tsk_ed.

Before Gary could respond with something sarcastic, Ash decided to jump into the conversation with something stupid to say. "What?" he gasped. "Gary would never hit a girl! And how could he, anyway? There was, like, a computer between the two of them… and a lot of miles. I mean, she's in Cerulean, isn't she? It'd be kinda hard to hit her if she was that far away. But, anyway, Gary would still never do that! Even if he is a big douche—I think that's the word?—I know he would _never _hit a girl."

The two decided to ignore him, in which Ash sulked back into the den to carry on with his game. Seconds after he started playing again, Leaf skipped in with Pikachu, grinning widely.

"Aqua and I were just singing this song," she laughed, picking up the Guitar Hero microphone. Gary soon followed her, grabbing the guitar—Ash was playing the drums—and the game quickly turned to three-player.

The three started singing, their voices mixing nearly perfectly together.

"_Risin' up, straight to the top_…"

**ツ**

* * *

"_Had the guts, got the glory_," a man with long, violet hair sang rather impressively as he flipped pancakes on the griddle. Shinx purred at his feet, nuzzling his nose against the man's ankle.

A low growl came from behind the man. "Arceus, Reggie, could you please stop? I've been tolerant of your singing for the past two minutes. I can't handle it anymore. Just make it stop." The man—Reggie—didn't even flinch, quite used to his little brother's behavior.

"_Went the distance, now I'm not gonna stop_," sang Reggie, the last word ending in a laugh as he heard his brother grunt in pure frustration. "Okay, okay, I'll stop." Laughing again, he put his hands up in surrender and turned to face his brother.

Huffing, his brother stomped towards the living room, where he plopped down on the couch. Shinx followed closely behind, only further irritating the teen.

"What's got you in such a grumpy mood?" asked Reggie casually, as if he asked this every other day.

"I'm always in a grumpy mood," came the teen's short retort.

Reggie sighed. "I know that, Paul, but a bit more so than usual."

Using the TV remote to turn on the local news station, Paul promptly ignored him.

"Okay, then." Reggie sighed again and went back to flipping the pancakes. As he was loading them onto a large plate, the home video phone began ringing. "Paul, would you please set the rest of the pancakes on this plate here while I go answer the phone? Wouldn't want them burning, and it might be a client."

Grunting again, Paul managed a low "Sure" before standing up and making his way over to the griddle as Reggie answered the video phone in the other room.

Bits of Reggie's conversation drifted into the kitchen, but Paul wasn't really paying attention, as he wasn't nosy unlike _some _people he knew. Meaning pretty much everyone he's ever met in his life, but there was one who irritated him the most with her nosiness.

Paul shook his head to get rid of his thoughts; he spent enough time thinking about her, and needed a break. A very, _very _long one.

"I'll give him the great news," Paul heard Reggie say, and his older brother appeared about a minute later, beaming.

"What are you so happy about?" grunted Paul. "Did Maylene call or something?"

Reggie's ears grew red, but his facial expression didn't change. "Nope. It was Cerulean Academy."

Paul raised his eyebrows, surprised. Wasn't he supposed to receive letters in the mail from the schools he applied to?

Seeming to understand his unspoken question, Reggie explained, "The head of the Board of Admission, Mrs. Lauren Smith, called us to invite you to C.A. on a rare freshman scholarship. She said that they were impressed with your battling skills at the Vertress Conference last month, and that you'd be a great addition to the Battle Tactics class. Orientation week is this Wednesday, so if you'd like to know more of what you'd be doing there, I suggest you hop on PokéAirlines and book a flight."

Reggie's smile grew as he finished repeating the information. While Paul never showed any emotions on the outside, his eyes were very expressive, and Reggie could see shock, confusion, and even a little bit of excitement in his brother's eyes.

Seeing Reggie's knowing look, Paul grunted, "Whatever," and started to stalk over to the laptop that sat on the breakfast bar, but Reggie stopped him.

"_Just a man, and his will to survive_," he sang, and then asked jokingly, "Sing with me?" knowing full well what Paul's answer would be.

"No way in hell."

**ツ**

* * *

"_It's the eye of the tiger—it's the thrill of the fight! Risin' up to the challenge of our rival!_"

A chartreuse-green-haired teen moaned tiredly as he leaned on the ship's railing, looking out at the sea. This song always reminded him of his rival, May. Feisty girl.

At that moment, his PokéGear began to ring, which struck him as odd. Sure, he carried it around with him in case somebody needed to reach him face-to-face if he wasn't at a Pokémon Center, but it was still very uncommon.

Pressing a button, the screen quickly illuminated. A woman with long, shiny-black hair appeared, but before he could ask her how she got his contact, she began speaking. Once she had introduced herself and her reason for calling, his interest peaked and he carefully listened to her every word.

Apparently, he was going to be attending Cerulean Academy on a rare freshman scholarship. Coordinating 101 with none other than his "BFF"—as a few people he knew liked to refer them as—Solidad Saori would be his main class. And he had five days to get to Cerulean City for orientation week, which, luckily for him, should only take three days travel as he was coincidently heading to Kanto right now.

"We hope to see you there," said Mrs. Smith, smiling.

"Th-thank you," stumbled Drew, stunned by the news. He quickly recovered. After all, his amazing skills had gotten him pretty far—he really shouldn't be so shocked.

Mrs. Smith winked. "You're very welcome, Mr. Hayden. See you Wednesday."

Once his PokéGear was safely inside his bag, Drew smirked, flicking his hair. He knew he was amazing, but still.

He was _so _going to rub this in May's face next time they spoke.

**ツ**

* * *

"_As the last known survivor stalks his prey in the night, and he's watching us all in the eye…_" Dawn Berlitz laughed as she swung her hips around, singing into her hairbrush.

It was late evening in Twinleaf Town, but she was already in her leopard-print pajamas. She wasn't planning on sleeping for another three hours, though—it was movie night, and she and her mother were about to watch _The Notebook _ for the 107th time (yes, she kept count).

"Piplup!" Dawn's Pokémon, Piplup, cheered. Dawn laughed again.

She paused the music when she heard the downstairs' video phone ring. Running down, knowing her mother was still busy making the popcorn, she made sure she still looked presentable in the nearby half-bath, then sat down and pressed the _Answer _button.

In the kitchen, Dawn's mother, Johanna, poured the rest of the popcorn seeds into the popcorn machine and joined her daughter at the video phone.

"Hello Miss Dawn, Mrs. Berlitz," the woman on the other line greeted, smiling a bit tiredly. "My name is Mrs. Lauren Smith, the head of Board of Admissions at Cerulean Academy." Her voice sounded a bit exasperated, as if she had said this one-thousand times today.

Dawn and Johanna's eyes widened, and their mouths gaped open, at a loss of words.

"Cerulean Academy is currently offering ten freshman scholarships to Coordinators and Trainers alike, and we'd love it if you could be one of those ten. If you accept, your studies would mostly be dedicated to our Coordinating 101 class, but you will still have to attend other classes, of course.

"If you'd like to learn more and see more of what our school has to offer, week for orientation starts this Wednesday." Mrs. Smith gave another worn-out smile before lightly laughing, "Good evening, Miss Dawn and Mrs. Berlitz. We're looking forward to meeting you." _Call Ended. _

"OMG," Dawn screeched, standing up so fast the stool almost crashed to the ground. "Mom, did you hear what she just said?!"

Johanna grinned, nodding. "Yes, honey, I did. How wonderful! My baby's going to an elite school on a rare scholarship!"

Dawn squealed, skipping into the kitchen and turning off the popcorn machine.

"I think I'm too excited to watch _The Notebook _now," Johanna said, laughing.

"I'm never too excited to watch _The Notebook_." After putting all the popcorn into an extra-large bowl, Dawn practically danced into the living room, plopping down on the couch.

Smiling widely, she sang under her breath, "_Of the tiger!_"

**ツ**

* * *

Fifteen-year-old Misty Waterflower stared at the Post-It note stuck on the fridge, dumbfounded.

_Misty: Some Lauren girl wants to meet you at Starmie Bucks at three o'clock sharp. Said it was important. –Violet_

Misty plucked it off of the fridge and glanced at the clock. _2:48 p.m. _So she still had a good twelve minutes. Whoever this "Lauren" was, Misty wasn't just going to stand her up if it was important. Though, she thought, it could just be a Trainer looking to meet her before battling for a gym badge. It wouldn't be the first time.

Shrugging, Misty walked over to the front entrance and grabbed her jacket. Azurill cried out from behind her, wobbling to her feet. Misty giggled and picked up the cuddly water-type, tucking him inside her coat. "Can't forget you, now can we? You little troublemaker," she teased, flicking his nose lightly.

Once the main door was closed and locked, Misty power-walked down the street and turned the corner. Starmie Bucks sat at the edge of another street right across from where she was standing. Once the crosswalk sign blinked, telling her she had ten seconds to cross the street, she hurried across and quickly stepped inside, relieved to be out of the somewhat chilly weather. (Sure, it was only mid-August, but it was still nippy in her opinion.)

Music drifted out of the shop's speakers. "_The eye of the tiger…_"

Misty's foot lightly tapped to the beat as she looked around the shop, trying to determine who this Lauren could be. It wasn't hard, considering the shop was near empty and there was only one woman sitting in a booth at the back.

"Lauren…?" Misty asked carefully as she approached the woman.

The woman looked up, smiling kindly. "Yes, yes. That would be me," she said, and stood up to offer Misty her hand. "Mrs. Lauren Smith. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Misty shook her hand. "Misty Waterflower."

"_The eye of the tiger…_"

"Please, take a seat." Lauren gestured to the other side of the booth.

Misty nodded, sliding into the booth and tucking her hands into her lap. Azurill slid out of her jacket and into her arms, giggling. Misty tapped him on the head—her way of saying, _Be polite_.

Lauren cleared her throat. "As I've told you, my name is Mrs. Lauren Smith. I'm at the head of the Board of Admissions for Cerulean Academy."

Misty blinked at her, surprised. Someone as important as Lauren wanted to speak with _her_?

"_The eye of the tiger..._"

When Misty didn't say anything, Lauren continued. "We received your application two weeks ago, and the School Board decided to look more into you. We already knew that you were the gym leader at the Cerulean Gym, but we wanted to see if you had any more accomplishments. You see, there is a rare freshman scholarship that we are offering to ten students at C.A. We wanted to verify that you would be a great addition to our school, and what we found on your record… well, yes, we certainly think you would be a marvelous addition." Lauren paused, allowing the information to sink in.

"_The eye of the tiger…_"

Misty's mouth hung open, baffled. "W-wait. So you're saying that you guys want _me _to be one of your special students or something?" she asked dazedly.

Lauren smirked, taking a sip of her coffee. "You could say that. If you accept, your main class would be Battle Tactics. You will still have to take other classes as well, as I assume you already know."

Misty nodded.

"Please join us for orientation week. It starts this Wednesday, and you can learn more about our school, the teachers, the clubs, etc."

"Of course…" mumbled Misty.

Lauren smiled again. "Thank you so much for your time, Ms. Waterflower. It's been a pleasure to finally meet you." She stood up, grabbing her purse, and walked to the door.

Standing up, Misty called after her, "Th-thank you!"

Lauren raised a hand up, letting Misty know that she had heard.

Once the door closed behind her, Misty slowly exhaled, sitting back down in her seat. "Holy Arceus…"

"Holy Arceus!" she squealed, hugging Azurill tightly to her chest. "What just happened?"

"_The eye of the tiger…_"

* * *

**~ツ~**

* * *

**HELLO WORLD. I AM NOT DEAD, WAHOO (again)! Here is the Prologue I have promised, and I hope it's not too bad. I know that it was a bit annoying going through the "C.A. is offering a scholarship BLAH BLAH BLAH" thing like 37 times, but oh well haha. **

**And yea, I totz got the inspiration for this Prologue from the song "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor. c; And Glee, too. I've been watching a bunch of Glee since Cory died... :/ R.I.P.**

**On a lighter note, you can expect chappy 1 to be out sometime in early March! I think I already know what's going to happen, so hopefully I can get it done. (I'm freaking tired of disappointing you guys LOL.) **

**Special shout out to Apheleia for being an awesome beta and an even awesomer friend! I love you, girl! Please be my BFF for like, ever?**

**Also, look out for CeeCee, Dylan, Aqua, Sissy, Max and Aiden next chappy! The last four will be up to something evil, don't worry.. hehe. **

**Please watch out for my V-Day one-shot titled _I Hate Valentine's Day_. (It's more of a short story then a one-shot, but what can you do?) It should be out later today! :3**

**Thank you so much for reading and I love you guys to death for putting up with me. I know that I'm not the best updater, but I'm trying to do better, I swear! XD **

**Love you very, very much, guys! **

~CeeCee~

* * *

**DISCLAIMER: **I own absolutely nothing in this chapter. All rights reserved. (I've always wanted to say that LOL. But I don't think I did it right... oopsy)


	2. Chapter 1: Orientation Week–Day 1–Part I

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**Staged Love**

.

Chapter 1:

_Orientation Week – Day 1 – Part I_

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She didn't want to admit it, but she was freaking out right about now. This was all so crazy—was she really here? At Cerulean Academy?

A puff of air blew on her ear, causing a shiver to run down her spine and a small squeak to escape her lips. She jumped nearly five feet away from the source of the puff—a fifteen-year-old boy—and rubbed her ear so harshly that it turned red, as if trying to get rid of his lingering breath (or perhaps the _feeling_ of his lingering breath).

He couldn't help but laugh at her expense. "You were talking out loud again," he said. "In third-person, too."

She glared at him. "Shut up."

Smirking, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and promptly ignored her command. "It is pretty crazy, isn't it? We only applied for fun, and we ended up being accepted as honor students," he chuckled.

She scowled and shrugged his arm off her shoulders. "Because we're awesome, duh," she said seriously. "Mostly me, though—I'm like, totes more aweseomsauce than you."

He rolled his eyes. "You can't prove such a thing."

She stuck her tongue out at him, trying hard not to laugh. "Last one there pays for lunch!" she called, taking off running towards the magnificent structure.

No way in hell was he paying for her appetite.

**ツ**

* * *

"May, stop it!" shouted Max, May's younger brother, as his sister tugged on his ear, dragging him with her.

"This is what you get for not telling me you were admitted to C.A.'s middle school until literally thirty seconds before we got on the ferry!" complained May.

"I'm sorry!" pleaded Max, hiding a laugh.

May reluctantly let go, wrinkling her nose. "But why didn't you tell me? I mean, this is huge! Not only did I get admitted, but so did you!"

Max huffed. "Geez, May, thanks for believing in me."

May ruffled his hair. "I'm sorry, Maxie. I didn't mean it like that," she laughed. "I'm just surprised, is all."

"Whatever," Max grumbled. "Let's just go."

May hummed in agreement and began skipping up the winding driveway.

Not even a few moments later did May screech, "Max! Max! Look, there it is! Cerulean Academy!" and ran so fast towards the large iron gate that a cloud of dirt whisked up into Max's face.

"May!" whined Max. Once he could actually see again, he muttered, "Girls … such weirdo's."

**ツ**

* * *

Leaf was irritated. She usually was around Gary, but at the moment the irritation was times two, as Aqua was there as well.

And Gary, plus Aqua, equaled troubled.

The main problem was the fact that Aqua _encouraged_ Gary to flirt with her. And that was exactly what she was doing now.

"Ooh, I know!" Aqua was whisper-shouting, as if Leaf couldn't hear her. "Gary, you _have _to try #72. See, look," she said, pointing at something written down in her notebook.

Gary snickered. "Yes, that's perfect. That'll definitely make her fall in love with me."

Leaf rolled her eyes. "I can _hear_ you."

Aqua snapped her "101 Ways to Make LeafGreenshipping Reality" notebook shut—also by the name "WMLGSR"—and gave Gary a secretive smile.

"C'mon, Slowpokes!" yelled Ash from the top of the driveway.

"Pika-chu!" called Pikachu from Ash's shoulder.

"Yeah, what they said!" Aqua laughed, dashing ahead.

**ツ**

* * *

"Go away," grumbled a more-than-annoyed Paul.

Dawn rolled her eyes. "C'mon, Paul, where am I going to go? I can either walk ten feet behind you or ten feet in front of you. We're both headed to the same place, and it's not my fault we got stuck on the same boat."

"Pip-lup!" agreed Piplup, harrumphing and turning his head away from the plum-haired Trainer.

Paul grunted, pulling out his Pokédex and earphones, turning on some heavy-metal band that was probably called, "We Eat Pokémon for Dinner."

With that disturbing thought, Dawn sped her pace.

**ツ**

* * *

Drew had to admit, this school was two times grander than he had imagined. It had four battle fields, two Olympic-sized swimming pools, a tennis court, basketball court, ice-skating rink, and an underground science lab.

As his emerald eyes continued to sweep over towards the middle school, something caught his eye. A red bandana, to be exact.

Crap. If that was May, than his plan to gloat to her over video chat was gone.

But, if that really was May…

He smirked. It was going to be a long, but certainly amusing, few years.

**ツ**

* * *

Misty gulped and shut her eyes tightly, pinching her arm. Yep. That hurt. So it must be real.

Opening her eyes, she let them slide over the school. It was huge, probably big enough to hold over two-thousand students, possibly more. And that was just the high school; the middle school, about forty yards away, was even larger.

Taking a deep breath, Misty stepped forward.

And then fell flat on her butt.

"Watch where you're going, would ya?" grumbled Misty, standing up to dust off her butt and straiten her shorts.

"Why don't you watch where _you're_ going?" retorted an oddly familiar voice.

Suddenly a yellow mass hurled itself into Misty's arms, nuzzling its cheek against hers and cooing happily. "Pika Pi!"

"M-Misty?" the familiar voice managed to choke out.

Turning, wide-eyed, Misty muttered, "Ash?"

**ツ**

* * *

A man by the age of thirty-one stood atop the podium, looking out at the large crowd of middle and high school students.

Even he was shocked at the amount of Trainers attending school this year. Last year, only a total of two-thousand-seventy-two students attended, but this year… a whopping five-thousand-twelve.

Clearing his throat, he tapped his palm on the microphone to test it. The speakers screeched, confirming that it was working.

"Attention students," he said. His voice was strong and commanding, causing a majority of the crowd to turn his way and quiet their talking.

Once all eyes were on him, he continued with a smile, "Welcome to orientation week! My name is Jonathan Smith, the fourth grandchild of this school's founder, also by the name of Jonathan Smith," he chuckled, and several students joined in. "That having been said, I am also the principal of this wonderful school."

The crowd clapped. He held up his hand, and the clapping ceased. "Over there near that battle field—" He pointed to his left. "—is a small building, where you will be registered and receive your class schedule and dorm room arrangements. There are two lines, one for the high schoolers and the other for the middle schoolers. You may head over there now, but it would be much appreciated if only twenty or so of you went at a time, as there are a lot of you students here this year and we don't want it to be too crowded."

He smiled. "That's all for now. Please, take a look around. Get used to your surroundings," he said. "Have a nice day now." And then he stepped off the podium, and into the school beyond the crowd's sight.

**ツ**

* * *

"Hurry up, Max!" yelled May. She was at the end of the high school's registration line, which had over thirty people standing in it, despite what Principal Smith had said.

Max rolled his eyes. "May, the lines are pretty crowded. Why don't we just come back during dinner hour or something? There'd probably be less people around that time."

May huffed. "Because," she said, as if that explained everything. And then she gave him the "I'm-older-than-you-so-just-shut-up-and-listen-to-me-already" stare, which she'd recently perfected after watching several PokéTube videos.

Sighing in defeat, Max reluctantly shuffled into the middle school's registration line.

**ツ**

* * *

"Let's just get it out of the way," said Leaf as she walked towards the registration lines.

"Aw," whined Ash, "I wanted to battle first. Other people are doing it." He gestured towards the large battle field several hundred feet away.

Leaf smiled. "We'll do it right after, I promise. It shouldn't take too long here anyway."

Ash twisted his lips to the side. "Plus, I wanted to find Misty again. I lost her in the crowd somewhere while everyone was gathering to hear what Principal Smith had to say."

Gary smirked. "Does little Ashy-boy have a crush on Water-girl?"

Ash furrowed his eyebrows and tilted his head to the side. "Did I crush a water girl? Like a mermaid or something? Because, that's the only water girl I can think of... But no I did not crush her. I mean, that'd be pretty hard 'cause I'm not _that_ strong. Actually, I think she'd be the one crushing _me_ with that huge tail of hers."

The three Trainers refrained from face palming.

"Anyway," Aqua said slowly. "I agree with Leafy. We should probably just get this registration stuff out of the way now, so that we can go check out our dorm rooms and our roommates and stuff."

Gary nodded. "I agree to anything Leafy suggests."

"Then how 'bout leaving me alone for all eternity?" Leaf indicated.

"Except that."

Deciding to ignore him, Leaf glanced at Ash, who was staring intently at something. He had a look of deep concentration, which was strange; since it was _Ash_ they were talking about.

"Is something wrong, Ash?" she asked.

He shook his head. "No... I was just wondering, though. Does that bandana over there look familiar to you? I swear I know it from somewhere..."

Leaf followed Ash's gaze over to a girl with long, elbow-length chestnut-colored hair. She had a stylish red bandana tied on her head that even Leaf recognized.

"Pika-chu, Pika Pi!" Pikachu said frantically, hopping off Ash's hat and darting out of view.

"Ash!" exclaimed Leaf, smiling. "That's May! I remember her from one of your Hoenn photo albums."

Ash's expression lit up. This was awesome, not only did he have one old friend here, but two!

He didn't have to think twice about running over and giving the girl a big bear hug.

**ツ**

* * *

Paul was a sensible person. So just looking at the line with forty-something people in it, he knew that it'd be better to wait until later to register.

But the bluenette beside him thought different.

"Let's just do it now, Paul," Dawn was saying as she tugged on him forearm. "Sure the line is long, but it's only gonna get longer until like, maybe around five or six o'clock, which is four to five hours away. Plus, wouldn't you like to get settled into your dorm instead of having to drag around your luggage until then?"

Paul had to physically stop himself from yelling his next words. "You can go ahead if you want to. I don't even understand why you're still here anyway, as I've told you several times now to _go away_."

Dawn pouted. "Well… it's just that you're the only person here so far that I know. I'm not exactly used to being alone, and I don't like it. How do you do that anyway? Do you really like being alone?"

He didn't answer.

Dawn sighed, letting go of his arm and picking up her duffel bag. Piplup hopped into her free arm and yawned tiredly.

"Alright," Dawn said, "I'm going to go register. Hopefully I'll see you around." She smiled and winked. "Bye, Paulie-bear!"

And then she ran away before he could eat her Pokémon for dinner.

**ツ**

* * *

"OMG!" squealed a cute, petite middle school girl. "Look, it's Drew Hayden!"

Another squeal could be heard. "He's even handsomer in person! Ooh, do you think we should ask him for his autograph? My sister would totally freak!"

The petite girl sighed. "I don't think I could. I'd probably just stutter and end up spitting on his beautiful face!"

"Wouldn't want that, now would we?" said petite girl's friend with a laugh. "But still, isn't he gorgeous? You'd think that green hair would totally be unattractive, but he _so _makes it work. He'd be an amazing model."

Drew smirked. He loved listening to people fawn over him. He hated being completely surrounded by rabid fangirls—and quite a few fan_boys_—but he definitely did not dislike attention. Quite the opposite.

"Hey, you," someone called from behind him. Turning halfway, Drew caught sight of a redheaded girl, probably right around his age, shoving her way through a group of people.

Drew pointed to himself, and the girl nodded. Once she was caught up with him, she said, "Your name's Drew, right?"

"The one and only."

The redhead laughed. "She was right. You _are _arrogant."

Drew pretended to be offended. "Who would say such a thing about _the _Drew Hayden?"

She raised her eyebrows and continued walking forward, Drew following. "Wouldn't you like to know…" she trailed off, evidently knowing what he was going to say next.

"Actually, I would," he said.

"First, why don't we officially introduce ourselves?" she suggested.

"Alright." He stopped walking, turning to face her. He put his hand out, and she took it in hers, shaking it twice. "Famous Coordinator Drew Hayden."

"Former Cerulean City Gym Leader, Misty Waterflower," she said. "It's nice to finally meet you."

Drew seemed surprised. "'Former?'"

"My sisters were on a year-long cruise, so I took over. But now they're back, and I'm attending here," explained Misty.

Drew nodded in understanding. "So… who said I was arrogant?"

Misty grinned, barely hiding a laugh. "You see, we both have a mutual friend. If you even consider her as a 'friend.'"

"I don't have many friends," Drew confirmed, "especially ones that are girls. Which, to be exact, is one, and a kind-of friend. So either Solidad or May."

Misty raised her eyebrows. "And which one of those do you suppose would call you, and I quote, 'An arrogant grass head that clearly was born with two brains, a normal one, and one created by aliens that was pumped full of a chemical disease called egotism.'"

Drew chuckled. "Maple's getting better at the insults. Took her long enough."

When Misty didn't answer, he glanced over at her and saw her staring fixedly at the registration line.

Only a moment later did she say, smiling, "Speak of the devil."

**ツ**

* * *

"Ash!" squealed May, giving the boy a half-hug.

"Pika Pi! Pika Pikachu-chu," grunted a seemingly insulted Pikachu.

"And Pikachu!" May added, assuming the Pokémon had said something along the lines of, "And what about me?" in Poké Language.

The Electric Mouse grinned, hopping into her arms and nuzzling her cheek.

"Ash! What are you doing here?" asked an excited Max.

Ash ruffled his hair. "I could say the same to you guys."

"Next, please," called the woman sitting at the high school's registration desk.

"That's me!" laughed May. "Just a sec." And then she turned around to face the woman. May recognized her immediately. "Oh! Hey Mrs. Smith, it's good to see you again."

Mrs. Smith smiled. "You as well, Miss Maple. Okay, so first thing I need is your full name."

"May Melanie Maple," recited May. "My parents were very creative with mine and my brother's names. We both have triple M's."

"I used to have triple L's before I got married," said Mrs. Smith. "Alright, now I need your age and birth date, the type of Pokémon you've brought with you, and your Trainer ID, otherwise known as your Pokédex."

"I'm fourteen, and I was born on May 17th, 1999. As for Pokémon… I think I brought my Blaziken, Wartortle, Glaceon, Girafarig, Prinplup and Shinx."

After Mrs. Smith was finished selecting all of the Pokémon she had listed, May pulled out her Pokédex and clicked "Trainer ID." The Pokédex then recited her name, the place in which she received her Pokédex, and a few of the main ways it could help guide her.

A few moments later the printer beside the computer hummed, printing out her school schedule, dorm room location, and locker number. May grabbed the paper, scanning it with her eyes.

"Is there any class you would like to add?" asked Mrs. Smith. "Those there are just the ones you absolutely have to attend. However, you can only add one more class. Since you're an honor student majoring in Coordinating, you have that class for almost two hours, and only have enough time for one other class unless you'd rather just have Study Hall.

"On the board behind me is a list of classes, so pick one if you'd like. You can also bump up three of your classes to AP, but we recommend only having two AP classes for honor students, as most of you get double the homework and assignments for the classes you're being honored for."

May nodded and began scrutinizing the board. Half of what Mrs. Smith said was confusing to her, but she got the gist.

Glancing down at her sheet again to double check the classes she would already be taking, May decided, "I'd like to add AP Music Theory, please."

"Ah, finally. You're the second to choose that one today," said Mrs. Smith with a pleased smile. "You want me to let you in on a little secret?"

May beamed. She liked secrets, because if you actually kept them secret, it proved that you were at least a relatively good person.

Mrs. Smith lowered her voice. "I'll be teaching that class," she whispered eagerly. "I just adore music. Always have."

May clapped twice, grinning. "Yay! At least I know I won't hate all of my teachers now," she laughed.

"I actually think you'd like most of them," said Mrs. Smith. "Except Old Man Jeffrey. Nobody likes him."

"I'll be looking forward to meeting him," May said sarcastically. "Anyway, thank you, Mrs. Smith! I appreciate everything your school has offered me and my brother. We are very grateful."

Mrs. Smith waved her off. "Don't be silly. Now go on and get settled into your dorm. But I'll warn you now; your dorm will have four other girls living there as well, also honor students. Hopefully you'll all get along."

May nodded positively. "I'm sure we will. Thank you again, Mrs. Smith, really. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Ms. Maple. Now go on, shoo. You're holding up the line," teased Mrs. Smith.

May smiled sheepishly and walked to the end of the line, where Ash and Pikachu had returned while she talked with Mrs. Smith. Max soon joined her, having finished speaking with the man at the middle school's registration desk.

"I'm going to go check my dorm out," said May. "But before I do, can I have your Pokédex number so I can text you later?"

"Sure," Ash agreed, pulling out his Pokédex and switching it with May's. The two exchanged numbers and replaced their Pokédexes.

"You can stay with Ash if you'd like, Max," offered May. "You guys can catch up and stuff. Just don't go and eat something without telling me first. I'm starving."

Max nodded enthusiastically. "Awesome! Thanks, sis, you're the best!"

"I know," May answered cheekily. "Alright, see you guys later!"

And with another cloud of dirt, May was gone.

* * *

**~ツ~**

* * *

**YO WHAT UP HOMMIES. CEECEE THE AWESOMESAUCE DRAGON SLAYER HAS RETURNED. **

**Yeah so first things first I'd just like to apologize for my lateness. I have no excuse for it other than "being damn busy" which I'm guessing isn't good enough. XD **

**And second, this was a bit longer but I cut out the end and it will be the start of the next chapter. I know that the way this chapter ended was lame and totally uncreative, but I promised I would get this chapter up in the beginning of MARCH and THEN yesterday, so I just decided to post it as is. **

**That having been said, I'd also like to apologize for the quality of this chapter. I don't like it very much. It seems rushed and kind of awkward. And I also apologize for any major mistakes, as I didn't really do a thorough edit LOL. **

**But anyway... OMG FAIRY TAIL IS BACK SQUEEEEEEEEEE! *O* I waited FOREVER for it and it finally came back last week and I was just smiling and giggling through the whole entire thing even tho some of it was kind of sad and even though I already knew what was gonna happen cuz of the manga but you know DAT OPENING AND ENDING were like perf and all of the adorable NaLu and perfectness and SQUEEEEEEEEEEE I'm gonna go watch the next episode as soon as I'm done typing this really really really really long sentence if it can even be called that **

**Oh and before I go (XD), have you guys heard Lea Michele's new album? It is absolutely beautiful, I swear. :3 My favorite songs are Cue the Rain, Gone Tonight, Empty Handed, Thousand Needles, If You Say So and The Bells (R.I.P. Cory!). What are your favorites? **

**Anyways, thank you so much for being the awesomest readers ever. I love you so so so so so so much. Thank you for putting up with me, you're the best. **

**Hopefully I'll get another chapter out for an Easter present! I'm not making any promises though. **

**Love you! **

~CeeCee~

* * *

**DISCLAIMER: **I own absolutely nothing in this chapter. All rights reserved. (I've always wanted to say that LOL. But I don't think I did it right... oopsy)


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